Why An Extra-Marital Affair Means Automatic Resignation For The Head Of The CIA

The central risk of a CIA agent disclosing sensitive information
to someone with whom he was maintaining an illicit extra-marital
affair is minor compared with the possibility the affair could be
used against him as blackmail.

The moment General Petraeus put himself into a position where his
private behavior became something he needed to hide from the
public —
as stated in his resignation letter — he essentially put
national security at risk. It's exactly the type of compromise
which would put any government worker at immediate risk of losing
a Top Secret clearance.

In fact, anyone applying for a Top Secret for Sensitive
Compartmentalized Information (TSSCI) clearance would be denied
for simply having any outstanding debt. Something as simple as a
DUI or alcohol problem can endanger passing a Secret Clearance
review, which is one lower than TSSCI (also referred to as a
'need-to-know').

Petraeus, as the head of the CIA, certainly had the type of Top
Secret clearance which allowed him comprehensive access to the
most sensitive pieces of National Security information.

Had a foreign agent found out Petraeus was involved in an
extramarital affair, the resulting leverage could have been
astounding.

That the CIA itself didn't know of Petraeus's activities is
itself astounding as well.